Out motto is true: pets that are spayed and neutered are not only happier but they are healthier too! Here is the ASPCA’s List of the Top 10 Reasons to Spay and Neuter your Pets:

Your female pet is likely to live a longer, healthier life. Spaying helps prevent uterine infections and breast cancer, which is fatal in about 50 percent of dogs and 90 percent of cats. Spaying your pet before her first heat offers the best protection from these diseases.

Your spayed female won’t go into heat. While cycles can vary, female felines usually go into heat four to five days every three weeks during breeding season. In an effort to advertise for mates, they’ll yowl and urinate more frequently—sometimes all over the house!

Your male dog won’t want to roam away from home. An intact male will do just about anything to find a mate! That includes digging his way under the fence and making like Houdini to escape from the house. And once he’s free to roam, he risks injury in traffic and fights with other males.

Your neutered male will be much better behaved. Neutered cats and dogs focus their attention on their human families. On the other hand, unneutered dogs and cats may mark their territory by spraying strong-smelling urine all over the house. Many aggression problems can be avoided by early neutering.

Spaying or neutering will NOT make your pet fat. Don’t use that old excuse! Lack of exercise and overfeeding will cause your pet to pack on the extra pounds—not neutering. Your pet will remain fit and trim as long as you continue to provide exercise and monitor food intake (although your pet’s metabolism decreases by about 25 to 30% after sterilization, so make sure to adjust your pet’s daily intake accordingly).

It is highly cost-effective. The cost of your pet’s spay/neuter surgery is a lot less than the cost of having and caring for a litter. It also beats the cost of treatment when your unneutered tom escapes and gets into fights with the neighborhood stray!

Spaying and neutering your pet is good for the community. Stray animals pose a real problem in many parts of the country. They can prey on wildlife, cause car accidents, damage the local fauna and frighten children. Spaying and neutering packs a powerful punch in reducing the number of animals on the streets.

Your pet doesn’t need to have a litter for your children to learn about the miracle of birth. Letting your pet produce offspring you have no intention of keeping is not a good lesson for your children—especially when so many unwanted animals end up in shelters. There are tons of books and videos available to teach your children about birth in a more responsible way.

Spaying and neutering helps fight pet overpopulation. Every year, millions of cats and dogs of all ages and breeds are euthanized or suffer as strays. These high numbers are the result of unplanned litters that could have been prevented by spaying or neutering.

If you had a sore throat, would you go to the emergency room? No! Everyone knows that trips to the ER cost you or your insurance company hundreds, if not thousands more than a trip to your regular doctor’s office would. Emergency Rooms are also notoriously crowded with long waits because of the length of time it takes to test, diagnose, and treat emergency cases.

Consider that the average animal hospital has most of the same expensive machines for animals that human hospitals have, yet unlike at the human hospital, the equipment for animals is used in only a handful of cases daily.

Are you wondering what we’re wondering? How do animal hospitals pay for this equipment? You guessed it, by raising the prices on what ALL clients pay for ALL services, whether your pet needs to use this equipment or not.

By limiting our overhead expenses, we are able to drastically lower our cost of delivering services to EVERY client. To put it simply, we would rather keep YOUR costs low and refer the emergency and intensive care cases to pet emergency or pet specialist hospitals that can more efficiently deal with such cases.

Do you offer financing or take payments

We are pleased to now offer Care Credit’s Low Monthly Payment Plans! Stop by or go to www.CareCredit.com for more information or to get pre-approved.

How do I care for my pet Before AND After Surgery?

Pre-Operative Care Guidelines for Cats

Food/Water

For cats, there is no food allowed after midnight the night before surgery, water is always permitted. Kittens under four months of age should be fed a small amount early the morning of surgery.

Check-in & Payment

You must check-in your pet between the hours of 8:00AM and 9:00AM on the day of surgery. Proof of rabies vaccination must be submitted at check-in. You may pay either when you drop off or pick up your pet. For your convenience, we accept payment by cash, credit card, Care Credit and PayPal. We are unable to accept checks at this time.

Cat Carrier Policy

All cats brought to The Fix Machine Animal Health Clinic MUST be in a carrier at all times. For your cat’s safety, please put your cat into a carrier BEFORE leaving home. We ask that your carrier be lined with a throwaway towel or newspaper in the bottom in case of any accidents on the way to the clinic or while waiting for his/her exam. Please remember that we are checking in many animals at the same time, including dogs. For the safety of you and your cat, please do not take your cat out of his/her carrier for any reason at any time.

Female Cats: in Heat or Pregnant

We will spay female cats that are pregnant or in heat, but there is an additional charge. If your female cat is in heat or pregnant, please let us know when you reserve a surgery appointment.

Male Cats

Please check that both testicles on your male cat have descended. There is an increased fee for neutering cryptorchid cats (on which one or both testicles have not descended). Please contact the clinic prior to booking a surgery if your cat is under 6 months of age and is cryptorchid, as we may reschedule to allow time for the testicle(s) to descend. We would be happy to confirm whether the testicles have descended prior to reserving a surgery appointment for you.

Check-out & Patient Discharge

You may pick up your pet between 2:30pm and 5:30pm as directed by staff at drop-off. You must pick up your pet by 5:30pm. Late arrivals will be charged a $25 late fee.

Pre-Operative Care Guidelines for Dogs

Surgery is by appointment only, and is usually booked out 1 to 2 weeks in advance.

Food/Water

If your dog is 10 pounds or less: You may feed your dog 1/3 of what he or she normally eats in the early morning before surgery. Water is always permitted.

If your dog is 11 pounds or more: Please withhold any feeding after 12:00 Midnight the night before surgery. Water is always permitted.

Check-in & Payment

You must check-in your dog between the hours of 8:00AM and 9:00AM on the day of surgery. Proof of rabies vaccination and balance of payment are due on check-in, when you drop your pet off for surgery. We accept cash, credit card, Care Credit and PayPal. We do not accept checks at this time.

Dog Carrier/Leash Policy

All dogs brought to The Fix Machine Animal Health Clinic must be on a leash or in a carrier at all times. If your dog is not in a carrier or on a leash, you will be required to leash your dog on arrival (even if you are carrying your pet). Please remember that we are checking in many other animals at the same time, including cats. For everyone’s safety, do not take your dog off leash for any reason at any time.

Female Dogs: In Heat or Pregnant

We will spay female dogs that are pregnant or in heat, but there is an additional charge. If your female dog is in heat or pregnant, please let us know when you book the surgery.

Male Dogs

Please check that both testicles on your male dog have descended. There is an increased fee for neutering ‘Cryptorchid’ dogs (on which one or both testicles have not descended). Please contact the clinic prior to scheduling surgery if your dog is under 6 months old and is cryptorchid. We may reschedule to allow time for the testicle(s) to descend.

Check-out & Patient Discharge

You may pick up your pet at any time between 3:30pm. and 5:30pm as directed by staff at drop-off. You must pick up your pet by 5:30pm. Late arrivals will be charged a $25 late fee.

Post-Operative Instructions: Cat AND Dog

Please read and follow the post-operative instructions to avoid the risk of injury or infection to your pet. Your pet’s care after surgery is extremely important, and can mean the difference between a speedy recovery and a delayed one.

Activity

Activity must be minimal for 5-7 days after surgery. Keep your pet in a room where it will be quiet and warm for the first 24-36 hours. Running, jumping, and wrestling with other pets or children are known to cause damage to the incision. Your pet should be kept indoors only (on leash outside for potty time only) and any activity must be restricted. Keeping your pet in a kennel or separated from other playful pets may be necessary at this time to avoid complications.

Pain

Some discomfort or soreness will follow surgery for 24-36 hours. All surgeries include free standard pain medication, so please follow the instructions given to you by the veterinarian that are written on the packaging of the medication. If you should have any questions please call the clinic immediately at 509-987-1PET for further assistance. Do not give aspirin, Tylenol, or any human pain medications to your pet, as most of these are toxic to pets.

Food and water

You may offer frequent but small amounts of water, and small amounts of food to your animal the evening of the surgery, but do not allow your pet to gorge or drink too much water at one time because this may cause vomiting. Resume normal feeding the morning after surgery. A little vomiting, depression, or lack of appetite is normal immediately following surgery, but after the initial 24 hours, any one of these signs may indicate a problem. You may call the clinic during business hours at 509-987-1PET for a recheck.

Urinating and defecating

Your pet should still be urinating even if it is not eating. It is important to verify that your dog or cat is urinating. If you have more than one cat you must watch the litter box to assure your cat is urinating. Anesthesia may cause diarrhea or constipation for a day or two, but if your pet does not defecate normally within two days please contact us.

Incision

Check your pet’s incision daily for swelling, bleeding, discharge, or wound opening. Some bruising, redness or swelling are expected and are not cause for alarm, but if it seems excessive please call the clinic during business hours at 509-987-1PET for a recheck.

Keep your pet clean and dry for 10 days after surgery. Do not wash or clean the incision as this may introduce infection. Bathing your pet (or allowing your pet to swim or play in water) is prohibited for at least 10 days after surgery.

Licking

Do not allow your pet to lick or bite at the incision. Male dogs especially are notorious for this. Dogs often lick at night or when not being directly observed. Scrotal swelling, redness or moisture at the incision site are all indications of licking. Fixing damage a pet does to the incision will be at the owner’s expense. If your pet is licking or biting, we encourage the purchase of an Elizabethan collar to prevent damage to the incision. They are available at our clinic, and at most pet stores.

Stitches

Your pet has buried sutures (stitches) under his/her outer layer of skin. There is no need to return for suture removal.

Virility

Male cats and dogs remain virile and can still produce a litter for 3-4 weeks after surgery. Please keep them confined during this time.

Emergency After Hours

Please call The Fix Machine Animal Health Clinic at 509-987-1PET and follow the instruction of the auto attendant to reach the on-call staff member. You will be given directions for treatment: either for a recheck at the clinic the following day, or through a 24-hour emergency clinic. The Fix Machine Animal Health Clinic is not responsible for any after-hours emergency care.

Where can I find out more about my pet’s health and get answers to other veterinary health questions I may have?

The Veterinary Information Network’s Veterinary Partner library resource is a great way to find out more about your pet’s health.

VeterinaryPartner.com is there to support your veterinarian and you in the care of your companion animals by providing reliable, up-to-date animal health information from the veterinarians and experts of the Veterinary Information Network (VIN), the world’s first and largest online veterinary database and community.